Lubricator for slideways



O H O Filed Aug. 28. 1958 INVENTOR. Joseph C. Price Fi5. Fig.6.

ATTORNEY United States atent O LUBRICATOR FOR SLIDEWAYS Joseph C. Price, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application August 28, 1958, Serial No. 757,826

3 Claims. (Cl. 15131.05)

My invention relates to lubricators for slideways such as those on drapery rods wherein the hangers for the drapes are movable along a slotted slideway in the rod, to open and close the drapes, the invention being also useful for lubricating rails and guideways for straw curtains, folding doors and the like.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of the character referred to wherein a non-liquid lubricant can be used, thereby reducing the frequency with which and to avoid excessive spreading of the lubricant on the rods, and of course avoiding oil dropping on to drapes or the floor.

The lubrication of the flanges on slotted drapery rods for example, reduces the strain on the pull cords that are used to slide the drapes to closed and open positions, with consequent reduction of fraying and breaking of the cords or ropes.

Some of the forms which my invention may take are shown in the accompanying drawings:

Figure l is a rear elevational view of a portion of a drapery rod of the non-elected species with my lubricator in operative position therein.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross sectional view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1.

Fig 3 is a sectional view through said lubricator.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view thereof.

Fig. 5 is an elevational view of the elected form of lubricator.

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view thereof.

Referring first to Figs. 1 to 4, the device is shown as employed in the lubrication of slideways 5 and 6 of a conventional type of drapery rod 4 upon which drapery supports such as indicated at 7 are pulled to open and close draperies in the manner well known in the art.

The structure comprises a holder having a handle portion 8 of rod-like form which carries a cup 9 that contains a cotton cord 10 that serves as a wick and extends through the lower inner side of the cup 9 and is wrapped around a stud-like extension 11 which has a hook 12 which is engaged behind the lower flange or lip 5 by hooking it over the lower flange and swinging the handle 8 in a clockwise direction, from an inclined position. Such movement brings the turns of the cord 10 on the stud 11 into engagement with the flanges 5 and 6. Thereupon the lubricator is slid along the flanges 5 and 6, with the hook 12 serving as a guide, thereby lightly lubricating such flanges. Since the oil is conducted mainly by capillary movement, there need be no surplus that would cause drippings. However, if there should accidentally be too much oil placed in the cup 9, such surplus oil could be caught in a drip cup 13 that is carried by the handle. The cord or wick can of course readily be replaced and will absorb so much oil that it can be used many times without placing more oil in the cup. The lubricator can be employed in lubrieating the flanges of rods of the telescoping type, including the ends of overlapped flanges.

Referring now to Figs. 5 and 6, I show a handle 15 that has a cup 16 for containing Vaseline or a like heavy lubricant and having a stud 17 provided with a lip 18 and a hook 19. When the hook 19 is engaged behind the lower flange 5, the handle 15 can be swung somewhat to move the lip 18 inwardly past the upper flange 6, with perhaps some snap action, depending upon the width of the space between the flanges 5 and 6. The elements 18 and 19 not only serve as guides when sliding the lubricator along the curtain rod, but also serve to limit the movement of extruded grease toward the outer end of the stud 17.

The handle has screw thread connection with the cup 16 and a duct 20 leads from the cup into the stud and communicates with orifices 21 and 22 that are in position to direct the Vaseline against the edges 5 and 6 when the handle is screwed up into the cup. This screwing up action can be semiautomatic since as the operator slides the lubricator along the curtain rod he can impart slight rotative or feeding movement to the handle 15.

I claim as my invention:

1. A lubricating device for a slideway which has flanges whose edges are in relatively opposed position, that comprises a cylindrical cup, open at one end, a stud projecting radially from the side of the cup adjacent to the other end thereof in position to be entered between said flanges, and having a duct therein that communicates with the interior of the cup, a lip on the outer end of the stud, and extending laterally therefrom, in position to serve as a guide on said flanges when the side of the cup is placed against one face of the slideway that carries the flanges and the lip engaged behind the other face of the slideway, the duct being closed at its outer end and there being discharge orifices leading in radiallyopposite directions from said duct, into the space between the lip and the adjacent side of the cup, and a handle having screw-threaded connection with the cup through the first-named opening, the threaded portion of the handle being of such length that it can be screwed into the cup such distance as to displace a substantial amount of lubricant and force it through said orifices.

2. A lubricating device as recited in claim 1, wherein the said threaded portion of the handle is approximately equal to the internal diameter of the cup and functions as a piston when screwed into the cup, to effect flow of lubricant to the orifices.

3. A lubricating device as recited in claim 1, wherein a second lip is provided on the outer end of the stud, the two lips extending in opposite directions, each adjacent to one of the orifices.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,208,865 Warwick Dec. 19, 1916 1,477,636 Dusseau Dec. 18, 1923 1,810,074 Friedlander June 16, 1931 2,206,153 Berggruen July 2, 1940 2,713,694 Soldan July 26, 1955 

